NASHUA, NH — Donors, power brokers and ordinary voters are urging trailing GOP candidates to get out of the race if they’re unable to break from the pack in Tuesday’s primary — to avoid handing Donald Trump a path to the nomination.
If New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie “can’t do it in New Hampshire . . . then he’s never going to be able to do it in the South, the Midwest or the West,” said one senior campaign adviser.
Toby Raich, a retirement industry worker who is split between supporting Christie and Ohio Gov. John Kasich, thinks it’s time for Jeb Bush and Kasich to get out of the race.
“I don’t know how you just go on beyond New Hampshire if you don’t come in the top four or five — especially if you’re at 2 percent in Iowa,” he said.
Sniping within the group of current and former governors has taken on a desperate tone as they battle among themselves to appear viable to establishment-inclined Republicans.
A Kasich telephone script obtained by The Post advises undecided voters, “Jeb Bush has used his special-interest super PAC to run a negative campaign and drag this campaign into the mud. Rather than have a debate about the issues, Jeb Bush wants more political games.”
Bush, with cash and an organization in place, told The Post he’ll carry on to South Carolina. “Of course — Hilton Head, come visit,” he said, referencing an upcoming event.
The Bush camp plans to hit Kasich, the former House Budget Committee chairman, on defense cuts Monday, while the pro-Bush Right to Rise super PAC has been steadily hammering Kasich by mail.
“If [Sen. Marco] Rubio finishes a strong second here, that basically wipes out a good part of the center right,” said University of New Hampshire political science professor Dante Scala. “Kasich goes away. Probably Christie goes away. Jeb Bush can go on to South Carolina because he’ll have the money to do so. At some point, he’s going to ask if it’s worth the effort.”
Neil Levesque, director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at St. Anselm College, says the clock is running down.
“They’re just going to run out of money and donors,” he said. “Plus, at some point, you have to start winning.”
Former Pennsylvania Rep. Bob Walker, who is advising Kasich, stresses the importance of a win.
“If they haven’t done well in Iowa, if they haven’t done well in New Hampshire, then there certainly is pressure to re-evaluate whether they can do it,” he said.
Bush is already feeling the pressure.
“Here’s a guy who had every possible advantage one can have as a candidate,” said Christie adviser Mike DuHaime.
Meanwhile, Iowa caucuses GOP winner Sen. Ted Cruz approached Dr. Ben Carson on Saturday night during a commercial break in the GOP debate and arranged a meeting to “clear the air” about his campaign’s actions in Iowa, where Cruz backers spread information that Carson might be quitting the race.